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Andrew Wells
Andrew Wells was a reformed supervillain and Watcher in the Slayer Organization. The younger brother of Tucker Wells, Andrew left Sunnydale High School with a proficiency in demon summoning and founded the supervillain group known as the Trio with Warren Mears and Jonathan Levinson. After a year spent as a hostage of the Scooby Gang, Andrew became their friend and ally, eventually training as a Watcher to the newly-activated Slayer army. Biography Sunnydale High Andrew Wells, the younger brother of Tucker Wells,"Flooded" grew up in Sunnydale. His aunt was his legal guardian."Seeing Red" A "nerd," Andrew was the victim of bullying while growing up, but was friends with fellow outcasts at Sunnydale High, Warren Mears and Jonathan Levinson."Predators and Prey" Inspired by his older brother, Andrew learned to summon and control demons, and sent a pack of flying monkey demons to attack the school's production of Romeo and Juliet, apparently for no other reason than to amuse himself. His plans were presumably stopped by the Slayer, Buffy Summers, and her demon-fighting friends, the Scooby Gang. Although the Scoobies quickly forgot the incident, Andrew, Warren, and Jonathan went on to remember it fondly. Buffy later foiled Andrew's brother's plans when he trained a pack of hellhounds to attack the senior prom because he couldn't find a date."The Prom" The Trio About two years after Sunnydale High's destruction, Andrew, Warren, and Jonathan formed the Trio, a supervillain group dedicated to taking over Sunnydale. Together they engaged in petty crimes, such as robbing banks and museums."Smashed" Andrew was a crucial member of the group because many of their endeavors relied upon his ability to summon and control various demons. Since Buffy was the protector of Sunnydale, the Trio secretly tested her abilities to collect information; Andrew's test involved getting three demons to attack her at her temporary job."Life Serial" The Trio began to fall apart after they used the Cerebral Dampener on Warren's ex-girlfriend Katrina Silber, turning her into a willing sex slave; she came to her senses and accused them of rape, so Warren killed her to stop her from leaving. Andrew helped cover up the murder by summoning a trio of Rwasundi Demons and was impressed when the Trio got away with it."Dead Things" However, Buffy figured out their involvement and began to investigate their activities further. Andrew set a Glarghk Guhl Kashmas’nik Demon on her to make her experience intense hallucinations."Normal Again" Warren and Andrew began plotting together against Jonathan, hoping to rob an amusement park and let their friend take the blame. Buffy stopped their plan, although Warren escaped, leaving Andrew to be arrested with Jonathan, who made sure that Andrew knew Warren would not return for them. In his frustration at Buffy, Warren accidentially murdered Tara Maclay. Tara's girlfriend and powerful witch, the vengeful Willow Rosenberg, hunted Warren down and skinned him alive."Villains" She planned a similar fate for Andrew and Jonathan, but the Scooby Gang managed to protect them long enough for the two to flee to Mexico."Two to Go""Grave" Redemption While in Mexico with Jonathan, the First Evil approached Andrew in the guise of Warren, and convinced him to open the Seal of Danzalthar underneath the rebuilt Sunnydale High, telling him that by doing so, the Trio would live as gods."Storyteller Returning to Sunnydale, Andrew murdered Jonathan in an attempt to open the seal,"Conversations with Dead People" but was soon discovered and held hostage in Buffy's house by the Scooby Gang."Never Leave Me" At first, the Scoobies were openly hostile towards Andrew because he had murdered Jonathan, because of his alliance with Warren, and because of his annoying habits. Nevertheless, Andrew tried to make himself useful around the house by replacing Buffy's broken microwave,"First Date" baking, and keeping a "big board" to track the First's plans."Get it Done" Eventually, he began documenting the Scoobies' adventures for future generations using a video camera. Although Xander, Anya, Spike, and Dawn were all happy to let him interview them, Buffy became angered by Andrew's attempt to turn everything into a story and she forced him to face up to the seriousness of his actions. When Andrew finally accepted responsibility for Jonathan's murder, his tears of remorse put an end to the supernatural chaos caused by the Seal of Danzalthar."Storyteller" Hoping for redemption, he joined the Scoobies in the Battle at the Hellmouth, where he was partnered with Anya against an army of Turok-Han Vampires and Bringers. Andrew was shocked and confused to survive the brutal fight. Later he comforted Xander over Anya's death, telling Xander that his former fiancé had died saving his Andrew's life."Chosen" Watcher Having earned the trust and friendship of the Scooby Gang, Andrew remained with them as they formed a global organization which located and trained the thousands of Slayers recently activated by Willow. He and Violet starred in television recruitment adverts."The Chain" Andrew received training as a Watcher from Rupert Giles,"Damage" and was granted his own Slayer squad in Rome."The Long Way Home, Part Two" When Angel encountered a psychotic Slayer named Dana, Andrew was dispatched to the Los Angeles branch of Wolfram & Hart to handle the situation. There he was excited to reunite with Spike, revealing that he had been devastated by Spike's death and required therapy to get over it. Dana was eventually taken down by Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, but when Angel tried to take her back to W&H, Andrew asserted that she belonged with the other Slayers. He also informed Angel that the Scooby Gang no longer considered Angel or his team trustworthy due to their takeover of Wolfram & Hart, and that he was under direct orders from Buffy herself to bring Dana back with him by any means necessary. Respecting Buffy's orders, Angel relented and allowed Andrew to leave with Dana. Months later, when Angel and Spike tried to track Buffy to Rome, they found Andrew instead. Buffy's true location was now secret and a decoy Slayer had been set up in Rome. Andrew informed two vampires that Buffy was dating the Immortal, an old rival of theirs, a ruse set up by him because he thought it would be funny."The Girl in Question" Rona transferred rebellious Slayer Simone Doffler to Andrew's squad in Rome, feeling that she would benefit from a less urban setting. Andrew and Simone were not compatible because they disagreed over whether Slayers should use guns. Simone eventually went rogue."A Beautiful Sunset" During a mission to Tokyo, Andrew used his knowledge of Japanese monster movies to direct a giant-sized Dawn in battle against her mecha counterpart, a moment he claimed to have been preparing for his whole life."Wolves at the Gate, Part Four" When Soledad was activated as a Slayer, Andrew went to recruit her, but she was turned off by Buffy's pitch."Harmonic Divergence" Outside Milan, Andrew located Nisha, one of Simone's lieutenants, so he and Buffy went on a mission to retrieve her. They rescued her from the nest of a Ragna Demon, which Nisha revealed had been created by Andrew, who, in order to capture Simone, had bred the extinct species back into existence. Buffy and Andrew finally confronted Simone, who demanded a trade: Andrew for the Ragna Demon. Simone explained that she wanted revenge on Andrew for his authority and annoying habits, but Buffy refused to give up her friend and Andrew's Slayer squad showed up to rescue their Watcher. Buffy later forgave Andrew for creating the Ragna, reaffirming that he was a member of the Scooby family. Later, Andrew's Slayer cell was forced to retreat alongside Buffy's to Tibet when Twilight began tracking down the Scoobies through their magic use."Retreat, Part I" Andrew took up his role as documentarian again to study Willow and the Slayers who had to learn to suppress their magic."Retreat, Part III Andrew was able to correctly deduce that there was a spy in their midst, who turned out to be Amy disguised as a cat. He assisted in the all-out warfare between Twilight's armed forces and Buffy's,"Retreat, Parts IV-V but became one of Twilight's captives along with Faith Lehaneand Giles."Turbulence" In self-defense, Andrew donned a composite Iron Man-Captain America armor. When Twilight (Angel) and Buffy ascended to a different dimension, and their home dimension became overrun with extra-dimensional demons, Andrew and Warren, who had been ressurected albeit skinless, squabbled for ownership of the armor. Andrew took a deep and potentially fatal wound from a demon, leaving Warren to protect him."Twilight", Parts I-IV. San Francisco After the Twilight crisis was averted, Andrew gathered what remaining Slayers he could and started a disaster relief organization. Months after magic was cut off from this dimension, Andrew attended Buffy's housewarming party at her new apartment in San Francisco along with the other former Scoobies. Powers and Abilities Much like his brother Tucker, Andrew was proficient in summoning various species of demons, though he refrained from using this ability after the end of the Trio. Additionally, he displayed enough knowledge of genetics to recreate the extinct Ragna Demons. He was also sem-fluent in both dead and demon languages. Aside from his skills with summoning demons, Andrew was trained in the typical Watcher skills and possessed an in-depth knowledge of popular culture. Relationships Sexuality Andrew appeared sometimes to be a closeted homosexual, expressing subtle attraction to various other males. He has fantasized about male actors Scott Bakula, Patrick Swayze, and Viggo Mortensen. In keeping with LGBT stereotypes, his top choices of the Slayers under his command were the "best dressed" Slayers, not the best fighters."The Long Way Home, Part One" Once, surrounded by countless Slayers playing strip poker in their underwear, an oblivious Andrew told Xander that he would be "bored stiff"."The Long Way Home, Part Three" Complicating Andrew's sexuality, Andrew once lectured both Spike and Angel about dating and women and was seen leaving for the opera in James Bond-style attire with two attractive women, referring to them as his dates. However, Joss Whedon later stated that originally Andrew was supposed to leave with a mixed-gender group of friends, so having two girls be his dates was unintentional. Andrew was also noticeably upset when Warren refused to make him a robot copy of Christina Ricci and stated that Scully from X-Files "wants me so bad". If Andrew was gay, he appeared to be quite closeted about it; when Buffy tried to bond with him over a mutual appreciation of Daniel Craig's swimming trunks, he quickly evaded the topic. Another hint was when he sang along to the Lady Gaga's song, Born this Way.Freefall Possible romantic interests While Andrew was frequently immature and inexperienced, and has never been in a romantic relationship, he perhaps unknowingly did harbor a number of crushes. *'Jonathan Levinson' - Andrew's best friend, the pair shared a bed while on the run in Mexico, and Andrew commented on Jonathan's built up body. While reflecting on his time in the Trio, Andrew said "wasn't Jonathan just the cutest thing?" *'Warren Mears' - Andrew's superior in the Trio and apparent idol. Warren exploited Andrew's loyalty but ultimately left him to be arrested. Feeling betrayed, Andrew cried "How could he do this to me? He promised we'd be together, but... he was just using me. He never really loved... hanging out with us." When the Scooby Gang raid the Trio's headquarters, they found letters written in Klingon, which Xander translated as love poems; presumably, Andrew wrote these for Warren. After Warren was murdered by Willow, the First Evil used Warren's appearance to manipulate him into killing Jonathan. When Willow found herself the victim of a hex which made her look like Warren, Andrew rushed to hug his former friend, accidentally groping Willow's breasts by mistake."The Killer in Me" *'Xander Harris' - Despite their previous clashes when Andrew was with the Trio, Andrew and Xander eventually developed a nerdy camaraderie due to their mutual love of science fiction and comic books. Andrew once ignored Willow and Kennedy making out to appreciate Xander's work on the windows, and thoughtfully described him as "extraordinary". He later watched an interview he had recorded with Xander and Anya, mimicking Anya's "lines" as though he was talking to Xander. Xander, while initially dismissing Andrew as "annoying", became fond of him over time, sending him a mbuna fish as a present from Africa. While training his Slayers in Italy, Andrew remained in frequent contact with the Scotland-based Xander. *'Spike' - Spike and Andrew became friends during a mission to find out more about Caleb."Empty Places Spike was either oblivious or indifferent to Andrew's apparent crush on him, and surprisingly tolerant of his annoying habits. When the Trio's secret cameras revealed Spike getting physically intimate with Anya in The Magic Box, Andrew said that Spike was "so cool," before hurriedly adding, "The girl's hot, too.""Entropy" While recording the Scoobies on his video camera, Andrew envisioned a bare-chested Spike in a romance novel type pose with Buffy; later, Spike showed interest in Andrew's interviews and willingly played along. Andrew was devastated by Spike's death in the Hellmouth, and was delighted to find him alive and well in Los Angeles, tearfully comparing his resurrection to that of Gandalf's from The Lord of the Rings. Andrew once commented that Spike's senses were "as well honed as his Viggo Mortensen pectorals." Spike held some affection for Andrew, tolerating several hugs from him and, upon learning how he had stood up to Angel, remarked that there was "hope for the little ponce yet." *'Anya Jenkins' - Andrew developed an odd friendship with Anya, who he believed was "the perfect woman", a statement which Anya very much agreed with."End of Days" In his video diary, Andrew introduced her as "a feisty waif with a fiery temper and a vulnerable heart that she hides, even from herself." When Anya died, Andrew heroized her to ex-boyfriend Xander, telling him that she died saving his life. He also avenged her death, killing the Bringer that killed her. Behind the Scenes *He was portrayed by Tom Lenk. *In January 2008, gay men's website AfterElton.com awarded Andrew the status as the tenth best gay or bisexual character in modern science fiction, despite commenting upon the textual ambiguity of Andrew's sexual orientation.Ten Best Gay and Bisexual Science Fiction Characters *In an interview with The Advocate magazine, Joss Whedon confirmed Andrew's hinted homosexuality, stating that it was inspired by actor Tom Lenk: **"Tom has a bit of a fey thing going on in his persona that, you know, you can't really deny. When I first looked at his audition tape, I said "OK, he, uh, he seems kinda gay. Do we want to make that decision the character? There's no reason why he couldn't be, so, great, let's pick the funniest actor." ... The character became very charming in his complete lack of awareness about, among other things, his own sexuality.""Coming Out But Canceled" The Advocate #1019, November 18, 2008 *Discussing Andrew's moment in "Chosen", where he tells Xander that Anya saved his life, Joss Whedon says: **"The thing that Andrew is sort of reviled for, making up stories, becomes the thing that he helps Xander with. Becomes the thing that he actually is good at, giving her the epic death she didn't actually get to have.""Chosen" commentary *Joss Whedon later indicated in interviews that, had the show continued for another season, Lenk would probably have been promoted to main cast status. *A recurring gag throughout all of Season Six and early Season Seven is that the Scooby Gang are completely unable to recall Andrew's name, often referring to him as "Tucker's brother", "what's-his-name", "what's-his-face", and "the other guy". Though this gag seemingly ends by the time of "Storyteller", it is revisited in "Twilight", in which Angel has trouble recognizing him. *There have been a lot of complaints and judgement of the Buffy writers (as seen in the letters to Scott Allie in the individual Buffy comics), that they are anit-gay and only willing to to portray lesiban scenes and couple. i.e. Willow with Tara and Kennedy and Buffy with Satsu. This is due to the fact that the only gay character hasn't had a relationship yet and only seens to be there for comedy. However, it has now been confirmed that a new gay character will be introduced in Buffy Season 9. So this is a possible relationship for Andrew (a possible image of him may be seen on the forth issue varient cover).'' A new openly gay character is being developed by Jane Espenson and Drew Greenberg and will appear about midway through the season, as part of the regular series. He's connected to the "changes in magic and the changes in the Slayer line". He'll "be a counterpart" (possibly to Buffy) who was just an everyday guy until the destruction of the Seed did something dramatic, and now he has "another way of slaying vampires". '' Gallery File:Andrew-wells.jpg|Andrew in Buffy season six File:Andrew.jpg|Andrew in Buffy season seven File:716 Storyteller.jpg|Andrew as the Storyteller File:Andrew as a Watcher.jpg|Andrew in Angel season five File:AndrewS8.jpg|Andrew in Buffy Season Eight Nerd-trio.jpg|Andrew and Jonathan Trio-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-696818 480 630.jpg|Andrew with the Trio Buffy issue 8.jpg|Andrew in Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine Appearances References Category:Watchers Category:Magic practitioners Category:Scooby Gang enemies Category:Human Minions Category:Scooby Gang allies Category:Humans Category:Males Category:Sunnydale High students Category:Sunnydale residents Category:LGBT individuals Category:Servants of the First Evil Category:Rome residents Category:Slayer Organization Category:Watchers